Re: Wembley : Thu Aug 31, 2017 1:10 pm  

shinymcshine wrote:

Cardiff hosted their Pride weekend over the August Bank Holiday, so the city was pretty busy already, and transport links weren't good either with no trains running between Newport & Cardiff, so M4 was pretty choked.

Hence, just be careful what you wish for.

That would be the crucial thing, the RFL has a habit of being a bit sloppy on the details. I like Cardiff, I've done RL there as a day trip and a weekend away, but bring the CCF forward to early July and it could be a winner. Probably get a more interest from the locals as the RU and football will be out of season too.

Re: Wembley : Thu Aug 31, 2017 11:10 pm  

LeythIg wrote:

Seem to recall an interview with either Wood or Rimmer where they claim the CC final to be 3rd ranked occasion behind SL final and Magic Weekend. Seems like promotion for CC final is more of an afterthought.

Can someone please explain how an event staged over two days that attracts a 60k crowd for 6 matches is bigger than an event that draws almost 70k for one match? Only thing that I can think of is that Magic is bigger financially for the RFL whist the CC is still the more lucrative event of the 3 events for the clubs involved in the final.

Re: Wembley : Fri Sep 01, 2017 6:57 am  

Sir Kevin Sinfield wrote:

I think the RFL have an agreement the final will be played there until a certain date. The stadium is 10 years old so if it was a 10 year deal that may now be up?

I think the deal is to have one game a year (doesn't have to be the Challenge Cup Final) a year there, unsure on its length.

I still don't feel moving from Wembley is the right thing to do. The stadium is a draw for fans due to its history and a big event for the players to play there too.

It just needs better marketing, I went to to the 2013 World Cup semi there and I have never heard so many southern accents at an RL game, because the RFL had employed a marketing agency. While of course England and a World Cup game is a different product for neutrals, even of we got a fraction of those neutral fans in for a CC Final we'd be heading back in the right direction.

Another option to look at is unreseved seating in one section, this is popular at the Magic Weekend and would entice people who want to go but arent sure who else from their family and friends are going and who they will sit with.

Re: Wembley : Fri Sep 01, 2017 4:10 pm  

Had an email from the RFL saying tickets for next year won't be on sale til October as their ticket website is getting upgraded. About time too, that 'colour in the stadium map' thing they do is very outdated.

Re: Wembley : Fri Sep 01, 2017 4:30 pm  

We should have moved away from Wembley before Hull won there!

Re: Wembley : Fri Sep 01, 2017 9:59 pm  

Selling tickets to Southerners for an England game is easy. Selling tickets for Wigan v Hull isn't. That's why more England games should be in London, the cup final can be played anywhere (with a 60,000+ stadium).

Re: Wembley : Sat Sep 02, 2017 6:58 am  

IMO the Final unfortunately just isn't a big enough occasion anymore for Wembley, and the RFL have only got themselves to blame. Magic has been part of the death, as well as Catalans inclusion in SL perhaps (how much money exactly do the RFL think the average fan has?!), as well as the increased importance and emphasis over the years of the Grand Final, which easily feels like a bigger and more important match these days.
Finally the timing is ridiculous; imagine being (for example) a Leeds fan in Sept 2015 having to find the money for Old Trafford a matter of weeks after likely shelling out tens if not hundreds for Wembley. The two games are just too close.
Principality Stadium in April or May, that's what I'd do. Last week's attendance in that 74,500 stadium would have looked miles better.

Re: Wembley : Sat Sep 02, 2017 7:36 am  

Roofs wrote:

IMO the Final unfortunately just isn't a big enough occasion anymore for Wembley, and the RFL have only got themselves to blame. Magic has been part of the death, as well as Catalans inclusion in SL perhaps (how much money exactly do the RFL think the average fan has?!), as well as the increased importance and emphasis over the years of the Grand Final, which easily feels like a bigger and more important match these days.
Finally the timing is ridiculous; imagine being (for example) a Leeds fan in Sept 2015 having to find the money for Old Trafford a matter of weeks after likely shelling out tens if not hundreds for Wembley. The two games are just too close.
Principality Stadium in April or May, that's what I'd do. Last week's attendance in that 74,500 stadium would have looked miles better.

Never mind looked miles better I think it would have been better

Re: Wembley : Sat Sep 02, 2017 9:45 am  

Go back to playing early in the season without massive gaps between games. So that the excitement can build for supporters.

Think that's more important than the location.

Re: Wembley : Sat Sep 02, 2017 11:25 am  

rhinos21 wrote:

Go back to playing early in the season without massive gaps between games. So that the excitement can build for supporters.

Think that's more important than the location.

I remember people at the time calling for the CC Final to be moved from May as early rounds were pretty much beimg treated as preseason warm up games by the full time clubs,and folk said that winning a trophy in May was pointless as it meant nothing come the end of the season. Plus it was competing for TV space with the 6 Nations and football.

So unless those issues are to be addressed somehow, putting it earlier in the calendar is unlikely to improve much.